Sotomayor: ‘Surprisingly Enough To You, I’m Not A Democrat’

After a few niceties, Stephen Colbert entered attack mode, saying he’s “no fan of liberal, judicial activism.” In reference to her new book, he wanted to know why she thought we need to know this much about Supreme Court justices. “It used to be just nine, faceless white guys up there and America ran great.”

Sotomayor responded that what she wanted to convey with her memoir is that “we’re not nine, faceless people. We’re nine human beings.”

Noting her history of “self-reliance,” Colbert asked Sotomayor why she’s not a conservative. “How do you know I’m not?” she shot back. “Surprisingly enough to you, I’m not a Democrat. I’m an independent.”

Asked “what’s the most conservative belief you have?” Sotomayor answered, “I believe in the Constitution.” To which Colbert responded, “Then I believe you’re not a Democrat.”